February To Do List For Military Academy Applicants

Depending upon where you are in the process, you may have done some of the items on this list. Skip them. Be

happy you’re done. Move on to the next

First Steps:

If you’re serious about attending the USNA or any other military academy, buy a few books (or check them out of the library) on the process. It’s worth the investment because if you pursue this dream, you will be investing much more of your time and money before you achieve your goal. Better to make sure this is the direction you want to go.

From the perspective of a woman who was accepted and how she accomplished it. Down-to earth, personal, definitely not dry, and should give confidence to any teen, male or female, considering a military academy as their college of choice.

A general and useful overview of the USNA application and the academy in general

Seniors–Follow up on all steps of the application

Check the binder you set up over the summer to be sure everything is submitted. Check CIS–Candidate Information System–the online application site for candidates only. Be sure USNA has everything you’ve sent. If they don’t, resend and/or talk to your B&G Officer. In fact, stay in close touch with your B&G Officer at this stage in your application process. He’ll be interviewing you and passing his recommendation on to the Admittance board.

Make copies of every piece of paper you submit. Then, if (when) they disappear across the country in Annapolis, it won’t be a show stopper.

Seniors–follow up on the Letters of Recommendation from teachers

Teachers are very busy writing these for many seniors. You may have to stay on top of them to be sure they get out. Don’t worry. Your teachers won’t mind. They’re used to it.

Seniors–Check your application status often

Acceptances are out–not all of them. That’ll take through June. Check online to find out what’s missing from your application and rectify it. Check with your B&G officer, too. He’ll direct you to solutions for any shortfalls.

March 1st–Candidate Section of the application is due!

Seniors–Blue-and-Gold Interview

The B&G (Blue and Gold) Interview allows the Naval Academy one more opportunity to insure that they appoint candidates who will make it through the next nine years. It has to occur before you are accepted and shows up as complete or pending on the CIS. Prepare for it. Don’t take it for granted because you think your B&G Officer ‘likes’ you. It’s his job to be an applicant screen for USNA, not your buddy.

Seniors–Accepted? Get a Passport

You’ll need one eventually, and sometimes, they take a while to get. Don’t run out of time. Get one now.

Juniors–get the preliminary application completed

That’s on USNA.edu. A preliminary application must be submitted to become an official candidate for next year’s entering class. If you applied for the Summer Seminar program, do not submit a preliminary application.

January is the deadline to complete preliminary application if you want to be included in next year’s application process.

Juniors–Apply for a Summer Seminar at the USNA, USAFA, USMA

USNA, USAFA and West Point all offer Summer Seminar, an opportunity for seniors to spend a week on the campus seeing if it feels right. And, it gives administrators a chance to watch and evaluate prospective students.

The United States Naval Academy Summer Seminar is a fast-paced, six-day experience for high achievers who have completed their junior year in high school. Summer Seminar teaches you about life at the Naval Academy, where academics, athletics, and professional training play equally important roles in developing our nation’s leaders. If you think that you may be interested in pursuing an appointment to one of the nation’s service academies and serving your country as an officer, you should seriously consider attending the Naval Academy’s Summer Seminar.

If you’re applying for USAFA, their Summer Seminar applications close end of January.

Juniors–Create your list of college choices

Applications aren’t due until September (early apps) or November/December for the rest. Be prepared. This time, six months before the earliest decision, is the time to determine which colleges serve you best

Juniors–Take the SAT and ACT

If you’re over 1400, you’re doing great. If you’re not, take it as often as possible. There’s a trick to the test that you’ll figure out as you take it over and over. A lot of colleges offer a PSAT-type test for free,. Take advantage of those opportunities. That’ll keep costs down and provide feedback on what you should work on.

Freshmen/Sophomores–Get your Social Security Number

You must have one to apply to the Naval Academy. If you don’t have the card, get it.

Tour the Yard

Tour the Yard if you’re in Annapolis, according to the following schedule:

Leahy Hall Briefing Times

Monday – Saturday 10 a.m. & 2 p.m.

*- These days exclude Federal holidays

**Note: Admissions briefs are held in Leahy Hall, which is about a 10-15 minute walk from Gate 1.**

Create your resume

List all of your activities, awards, community service. The best time to start this is as a freshman. Keep it up to date throughout high school. It’ll remind you of all your accomplishments when you’re filling out applications and essays.

Here’s a sample (truncated to protect the applicant info), set up in Google Spreadsheet with a simple organization with columns and rows:

Tour a warship

These tours are offered through your Blue and Gold officer or any number of other avenues. Find a tour. Take it. First and foremost, you want to be sure that a Naval Academy choice is right for you. Seeing how officers work on a Naval vessel is a good idea.

Hone these critical skills

All USNA applicants and grads are leaders. If you’re a freshman, even a sophomore, not sure if you have enough of the leadership gene, check out these posts to see how to develop these traits:

Read Books

Continue Community Service

Most colleges want to know you give back to your community; Military Academies are no exception. Do as much as you can. Give as much of your time and labor as you can afford. No, it doesn’t mean you can do less in academics or sports. Figure out how to do it all. That’s the kind of person USNA, USAFA and all military academies like.

Say hi to military reps who show up on your campus

Chat with them. Pick their brains. Find out what they can tell you about life in the military. It’s a different world and any way you can assure yourself it’s for you, do it.

Focus on your unique skill

Even as school heats up and time gets short, stay in touch with whatever it is that sets you apart from others. Military academies like that side of you. They want to know you can do everything, not just academics and sports.

Be a Leader

Wherever there’s an opportunity to be a leader, take it. The Military Academies want to see you as a proactive, can-do person, not a follower. Officers are the ones who make things happen and inspire the enlisted to do their best. Be that person.

Jacqui Murray is the author of the popular Building a Midshipman, the story of her daughter’s journey from high school to United States Naval Academy, and To Hunt a Sub, her debut thriller. She is an adjunct professor in tech ed, webmaster for four blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice book reviewer, a tech columnist for TeachHUB, a program reviewer for CAEP ISTE, and freelance journalist on tech ed topics. She is the parent of a Naval Officer and an Army Sergeant. Twenty-four Days–the sequel to To Hunt a Sub should be out this summer.

What’s in this blog

You absolutely gotta get into the Naval Academy? Start here. Find out why you should want to attend USNA, how to get in, what's the lifestyle, how to get started, problem-solving if you're stalled. Post questions for your unique situation.

A personal note:
When my daughter wanted a book on how to get into the Naval Academy, all she could find were books that told her how hard it was, how selective they were, how very few could achieve it. My daughter brushed them off, but I wondered how many kids would be discouraged by that approach and decided to write a book explaining how to achieve the goal, not why kids couldn’t. I stressed how teens can solve the problems that stood in their way rather than why they couldn’t, how they could get where they wanted to go rather than why they couldn’t get there. That worked for my daughter and I had no doubt it would work for others. From what I hear from readers, it’s true.

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